Monday, August 24, 2009

I spent my weekend smiling into shadows.A sullen teenager walking by my house. Hi! (He looked surprised.) A screaming child at the bookstore. Awwww. The kind of for-no-good-reason happy that has you looking for eye contact. Come on, look at me! I like you! I want to smile at you! La la la, anyone want me to make pancakes?

This is not like me, all this smiling, the eye contact. Pancakes. A near-sighted girl too vain for her glasses. (I learned long ago not to smile at people more than 5ft away as it is never who I think; the Girl Who Smiled Too Affectionately At Strangers forced to become The Girl Who Doesn't Smile At All, Her Eyelashes Not To Be Hidden Behind The Glare of Actual Vision.) But this weekend something shifted. My landlady invited us to dinner with our other neighbors, her home a topsy turvy mystery house she built herself using only recycled materials and found objects. We ate roasted chicken on her rooftop and drank wine, all of us characters from an Armistead Maupin story sans Jonestown, the children staying well away from the edge. The next day another neighbor baked us an apple pie--an apple fucking pie! And although I was in my bathrobe and had never been formally introduced I wanted to hug her, but not before I ransacked my own kitchen for something to proffer in return. Here kind neighbor lady! Care for some string cheese?

Then Sunday. Oh, Sunday. Easter, bloody, palm or passion, Sunday was the day of the Blog Out Loud event and I am still reeling from the kindness of strangers who are not at all strange. And here I gush: Megan and Rebecca are pretty much the most creative, dynamic women I have ever met. And genuinely nice. And, and, and: And I am thinking I should save the gush for a post when I can publish some of the video from said event. However, I would be remiss in not mentioning my fellow panelists who also deserve pancakes and pies, they are so rad: Sasha from The Bell Jar, Anne from The City Sage, Christiana from Ferm Living, Cassandra from Coco + Kelley and Lynn from Paris Hotel Boutique. A trickle of a gush, video content to come.

So yes, this weekend life was beautiful, la vie en rose, tra la la, the smell of bacon in the morning. And now I feel the need to give back to a Youniverse that is so Yes. Presenting the Second Annual Petunia Face Birthday Giveaway! Last year I gave away a fossil that not many people wanted; this year I am giving away a handmade scarf knit by Yours Truly that hopefully more people will want. Here is a pic of the piece that is in no way a master:And here it is modeled by the girl herself, alternating loopy colorblocks of muted pink, taupe, slate blue and cream:I believe the yarn is a cotton/wool blend, but I threw out the tags from the skeins and don't really remember. What I do know is this: it is incredibly soft. Not at all itchy. Like having butter wrapped around your neck if butter were fluffy squish and chunky wan. So I guess not like butter at all, but oh. 6"wide x 54" long. So here's the deal: in the comments section tell me why you think life is good. Cite specific examples, making sure to show your work. Then, next Sunday (my actual birthday), I will randomly-but-not-really (it is not at all scientific) choose an entry and announce the winner!

Thank you guys. Really, honestly, thank you for everything. If I could make the world a scarf today I would. Or at the very least a pie, but I am a terrible baker and have no apples.

24 comments:

I think that life is good because I have a comfortable place to live, we are in generally good health, I have a relationship with God, enough food to eat, a daughter who is bright and active and a husband who loves me. My life is not perfect, but it's mine and the only one I've got!

Life is good, well, because even though money is tight, and I'm up nights stressing about which bills to pay and which to put off my kids have no idea. They are fed, clothed, and get more love than they could ever need. We spend lots of time at home playing, cuddling and laughing. I'm happy, and that's saying alot. So money be damned, life is good.

Life is good - I have all the comforts of a roof over my head, food to eat and the health of my children and loved ones. Life is good and i savor every moment - as I have lost my 2 best friends in the last year to cancer and my dad to a murder - and given all the tragedy - I chose to live, smile and enjoy each moment as life is also short and I want to honor myself and my loved ones here and not here by living the best life possible and making a difference in people's lives.

I adore your blog and look forward to reading it daily. Have a good day!

Life is good because A) I'm not a dead turtleB) Or a turtle with prosthetic furniture sliders glued under my shell.C) My name isn't spelled stupid like: Sheryn, or Cherin, or Sharron. Its just plain Sharon.D) I have nice hair (Thanks Mom)

Life is good because I have a lovely little house, a baby on the way and a truly wonderful husband. I am getting more and more excited for our new arrival, and am falling more in love with my husband each day. I feel as if I'm surrounded by people who are excited for me too, and it feels so nice.

As I sat by a campfire Saturday night with dirt wedged into every orifice and a mosquito chewing on my neck, I was filled with contentment that my good hubby was by my side and my five year old was snuggled in my lap in her pajamas, drifting off to sleep.

She starts school this week and life will be changing in a big way, so I'm clinging on to these moments....

Life is good because I have learned to be thankful. Thankful for peace in a time of chaos, for lessons learned and food eaten. Thankful for holding hands and clean clothes. For central heating and air and splashing in the bathtub. Thankful for laughter and memories, forgiveness and honesty, prayer and the power behind it. Thankful for new life and bodies that can sustain it. For freedom and victory in our own sense, for sacrifice and loss that we eventually recover from. Thankful for self-discovery and that feeling when you finally realize you're exactly where you're meant to be. Thankful for dancing even when there isn't any music. For bleach and the smell of fresh lemons. For finding friendship in the most unlikely place. Thankful for rain and child-like adventure. For photographs and books, the perfect bra and one beautiful diamond ring. Thankful for promises and integrity, for faith and second chances. Thankful for the beauty that pushes and shoves its way through ugliness. Thankful that life is always good, even when it's not.

First, I loved the Blog Out Loud event last night and it was fun and kind of shy-making to meet you in person (or re-meet you after seventh grade...). Second, my post today is all about how effing happy and content I am these days so I am so totally getting your vibe. Thirdly, you knit? Stop. Just Stop. But I do want the scarf. I want the scarf because the universe is good. And the universe is good because instead of a job, I have a life.

It was great to meet you face to face at The Event yesterday. And imagine my surprise at being handed a packet of petunia seeds "by the girl herself" while waiting to speak with you. And getting a gander at that dish, Bryan. A hat trick! Anyhoo, thanks for chatting with me, it was a little like meeting a celebrity...

Life is good because the humidity in the Midwest has been (knock on wood) strangely absent this spring, I got free Chik-Fil-A for lunch and the library has no limits on how many items I can check out at a time nor how many times I may renew said items.

AW! I would have gone to the blog out loud event...if my grandchildren weren't in town. Yeah. That's right. GRANDCHILDREN. They call me Grandma Rose without a hint of sarcasm, because, after all. I am their grandmother....sigh.XoRo

Life is good because I can feel the dewey mist of fog on my face; I can hear the deep joyous giggles of my sweet little crumb; I can sense the warm and comforting presence of my husband as he enters the room; I can see the magnificent splendor of the world around me; I find hope in the goodness of people.

Life is indeed good due to the fact that I have wine, a lovely family and a roof over our heads. And did you know Michael Jackson might be alive? He allegedly walked out of the ambulance he was supposed to be dead in.

Also, I would wear the shit out of that scarf. Perfect for my little Colorado life.

Life is ... the quickening. That term professionals give to the very first flutterings you may feel during the first trimester of pregnancy. I was 18 and alone and to be frank,scared shitless. I was laying on my newly pregnant tummy, staring at the night sky and my pyscho neighbor with the shotgun aimed at anyone even about to get close to his car when it happened. Huh? what was that? There it was again! I jumped up and sat in my wicker king back chair. This was 1982 people! they were ALL the rage.I lit a Marlboro 100, again, what the hell did I know??? I felt those flutters and jumps again! I knew, right then in those first few moments I wanted this! Whatever this was, I wasent sure at that point, but I WANTED. I was overwhelmed, I was alone, I was penniless but I had LIFE! And let me just say, my beautiful LIFE has never let me down.Her name is Tara. P.S. Wicker chair went to the garbage in 1983 and smoking habit soon followed!

Life is good because my kids are awesome. I've gone through losing my home along with some of my dignity and a big ass chunk of money, but my family is still intact and for that I'm so grateful. I realized yesterday just how good life is when I took my little Zoe to the eye doctor and she was able to read the second to largest letters out of the eye she is almost totally blind in. To see that little bit of improvement brought tears to my eyes.

Life is good because I discovered the magic of apricot preserves and brie sandwiches. I can drink cucumber infused gin as often as I want to. It's good because I have a crush on a man who arranged for our first date to be a picnic. Because there will always be too many books to read, too many songs to hear, too many movies to watch, too many exhibits to see. Because between Bravo and TLC there are endless occupation-based reality TV shows. Life is good because pillow-top mattresses exist, even if I will probably never be able to afford one. It's good because I'm crazy enough to feel comfortable going camping when none of us know how to light a fire or set up a tent. Because there exists a fake Bavarian village in the mountains in Washington. Because sometimes I listen to my iPod when I walk home at night and am pretty sure it won't be stolen. Life is good because even though I'm unemployed, I still get Starbucks at least three times a week instead of making the 10cents/cup coffee I buy at Trader Joe's.

Hi, I'm Susannah and I love shiny things, swimming, the smell of fresh cut grass, orange blossoms and horse shit. The feel of my children's eyelashes on my cheek is a live virus that grows in me, multiplies and sustains. I will never understand Amish Friendship Bread.

I write for love but money works, too. Email me for more info, or just to say hello.
susannah.ink@gmail.com